The Dark Magician Overlord
by Ryan the Magus
Summary: James Frostfell was just a begginer duelist, trying to make his way to the top. This book follows James and his friends as they enter the Grand Magicians Tournament, and the events that build up to it.
1. Rivalry

"Hey guys!" James shouted as he walked over to a few of his friends that were gathered at a nearby locker. "What cha looking at?" James looked over the shoulders of his tall friend Martin. He saw Jesse Darktide holding a deck of cards in one hand, and a single card in the other hand. What was it? "A game called Duel Monsters." Leon, another of James' friends answered. "Hrm, thanks for not being vague." James replied, still not having a clue of what these cards were.  
  
Jake began looking through the deck of cards in his hand. "Hmm, I know it is in here somewhere. ah! Here it is. The Red Eyes Black Dragon, my strongest, not to mention rarest, card!" As he said this, Jessie held up the card letting everyone see. "There is a tournament in week, and I plan to win it with this card."  
  
Tim and Leon began talking back and forth as James remained silent. He was thinking. These cards intrigued him, as did the Tournament. After about a minute, Tim turned his attention away from Leon and the card he was holding. "Hey, you ok?" He asked James. Although Tim already had an idea what was going on. Jesse and James had always competed against each other at anything. They were always trying to prove they were better then the other.  
  
"No, just thinking about something." James shortly answered. "Really? What's that?." Leon said, a grin on his face. "I need to buy these cards."  
  
James sat at his computer, a chat window open with Leo. "You buy the cards?" Leon typed out. "Sure did." James messaged back. He then typed out "Opening the packs now".  
  
The new duelist picked up the first pack and tore it open. Nine cards came out, and he looked each one over. Cyber Falcon, Pale Beast, Remove Trap. what seemed pretty average cards. James opened up a few more. In the middle of a pack a card caught his eye.  
  
"Twin-headed Fire Dragon eh." he mumbled to himself as he looked it over. 2200 attack and 1700 defense. Not bad. Not bad at all. He separated the dragon from the other cards. He opened more, and then found another nice card. Judge Man. James put that card with the dragon.  
  
"Those cards are pretty good, but neither will beat Jake's Red Eyes. I need something stronger."  
  
Twenty minutes passed, and James was reaching the end of his booster packs. He had some nice cards that would be very useful in a duel, but he still did not have a card that could defeat Jake if they were to duel. James tore through another pack. Then another. He had only two left. The second to last pack contained a very nice trap card that he decided to put in his deck for sure. Only one pack left. James reached for it. The pack wouldn't open at first, so he tugged a little harder. The pack split open and the nine cards fell to the floor. He started reading them as he picked them up. And there it was on the floor! The card that can defeat a Red Eyes Black Dragon. James picked the card up and smiled.  
  
It was early Friday morning. The students at Fenton High began pouring into the school. James and Leo walked down to hall to their locker.  
  
"Ok. so trap cards can be played any time after I set them. hmm.. Fusion cards are considered special summons.. Hrmm.. Special summon. hmm.." James mumbled to himself as he flipped through the Duel Monsters rule book. Leo was more then a little annoyed.  
  
"So do you plan on doing anything else today besides reading that?" Leon asked.  
  
"Like what?"  
  
"Never mind!" "Hmm, I know what I am going to do after school though. I will have to go back to Solomon Motou's card shop and ask him a few questions about this game."  
  
The school day eventually came to an end. James took a bus to the card shop, and Leon tagged along for fun. The two walked into the store to be greeted by another kid about their age. James was eager to learn more about this new and intriguing game. Leon was a bit less enthusiastic.  
  
"Heya, my name's Joey Wheeler. Nice to meet ya."  
  
"Hello." James said back. "I am here to see Solomon Motou."  
  
"Ah, Gramps is in back over there." Just as Joey said those words, a door opened behind the check out counter and Solomon spoke out.  
  
"Oh, hello James!" Solomon called. "How were those cards I sold you yesterday?"  
  
"They are great, in fact I made my deck. But I have a few questions about the rules, and I thought you might be able to help me." James commented.  
  
"Sure!" Solomon answered, as he bent down under the counter. He came back up with a very thick book. The cover read Duel Monsters Master Rules: Volume 1. "Let's get started"  
  
***  
  
A few hours had passed. Leon started by looking around the store, but slowly tired of that. Joey had been looking through several sheets and notebooks of cards and making several stacks. Leon went over to see what he was doing, and the two began to talk. After seeing a few demonstrations of the game from Joey Wheeler, Leon ended up buying a few packs of cards. Later, Wheeler was a bit upset when his tab was as large as ever, despite making a sale for Solomon.  
  
James and Solomon continued discussing the game and Leon started listening. It was getting late, and the conversation was coming to an end.  
  
"Remember," Solomon said, "No deck is perfect."  
  
"Even yours, Solomon?" Leon asked.  
  
"Except mine." Solomon retorted.  
  
James and Leon got their things together and left the store, saying a final goodbye to Mr. Motou and Joey Wheeler. On their way out they ran into another kid, who they recognized as Yugi Motou, Duel Monsters champ. James hoped to reach that status one day. He had to work his way up, though, and next weekend he would have his chance to begin his Duel Monsters career.  
  
It was now 7:00 PM Saturday night, and James Frostfell was now in a large dueling arena instead of a card shop. Through a chain of ridiculous and, in some cases, uncivilized events, Frostell and Darktide were know preparing their decks to duel each other. They had paid to duel in a large 3-D holographical dueling arena, which did end up costing them a bit more then some pocket change.  
  
The most memorable part about this duel is the cause for it is pretty unmemorable. If you were to ask either of the duelists what had started the chain of events that led to this battle, neither would know, but both would make up some story and claim theirs is the true one. The true truth is that they had both wanted to prove who was better at this game, and asking for a friendly duel to decide the more skilled is not how the two of them did things.  
  
"Both players will start with 8,000 Life Points to begin the duel. The first one to reduce his opponent's life points to zero will be the winner. After the duel is over, please quickly leave the duel arena in a timely fashion to allow others to play." A voice boomed over a set of speakers.  
  
James found himself on a large dueling arena. A good distance across from him, Jesse stood in his own dueling station. "Lets do this!" James shouted, and inserted his deck into the dueling arena's automatic shuffling machine. Jesse did the same, and then the duel was ready to go.  
  
"Jesse will make the first move" the same voice boomed across the arena again.  
  
Jesse's Life Points: 8000  
  
James' Life Points: 8000  
  
Jesse drew his hand, and set a face down card, and summoned a Harpie's Brother (1800/600) in attack mode.  
  
James drew his card. "Not bad." he thought to himself. Setting a Collected Power face down, he summoned the Judge Man (2200/1500) in attack mode. A satisfied grin crossed James face. "Judge Man, destroy his Harpies!" James cried, and the monster complied. The towering Judge Man took one swipe at Harpie's Brother, and it was blown into many diminutive pieces.  
  
Jesse's Life Points: 7600 Jame's Life Points: 8000  
  
"That was very nice James, and it seems you have not only learned the rules of the game, but aquired a powerful monster, too. It's a shame it cannot hold a candle to my Red Eyes Black Dragon, thought." Jesse said, as he drew his next card.  
  
"If I were in your situation, I wouldn't be so cocky, Jesse." James spat back.  
  
Jesse put a monster in face down defense mode, and simply ended his turn.  
  
James picked up a card and looked at it. "Neo the Magic Swordsman (1700/1000) ! What luck! I can do some serious damage to his life points now!". James set the newly drawn card on the Dueling board infront of him, and the familiar zooomph sounded, as the computer generated the image of Neo the Magical Swordsman on the dueling arena. "Now, attack my monsters!" James yelled out, pointing a finger in Jesse's direction. The Judge Man attacked the image of the card in the arena, destroying, and it blew into pieces similiarly to the Harpie's Brother. Then Neo drew his sword and and in one swift swing, James' lead greatly increased.  
  
Jesse's Life Points: 5900 Jame's Life Points: 8000  
  
At about this time Jesse let out an angry growl, while banging his clenched fist on the dueling platform. He drew his next card and said something impossible to understand through clenched teeth, which quickly was overwritten by a smile of glee. "I summon Mr. Volcano (2100/1300) attack mode!" he cried, as the fiery monster appeared infront of him on the arena. "Attack Jame's Neo!". And with a quick movement of his hands, a large ball of fire leapt from Mr. Volcano's hands and engulfed Neo the Magical Swordsman in flames. Jesse then activated his facedown card, Fissure. The virtual ground beneath Judge Man opened up, and the monster fell into the resulting gap. The earth then closed up, destroying Judge Man."Looks like I took out both of your monsters in one turn." Jesse snorted. Jesse's Life Points: 5900  
  
James' Life Points: 7600  
  
It seemed that the tables were quickly turning. James had to do something quickly if he wanted to maintain the lead. James looked at his new card, and quickly put it into play. "I summon Time Wizard (500/400), master of the past and the future. Use your time roulette!" James shouted as he slammed down the card. It seemed just as the Time Wizard was summoned the round time roulette wheel appeared, an arrow spinning wildly around it's flat surface. If it landed on a skull, James wouldn't lose much. But he had a lot to gain. The arrow began slowing. and slowing... and slowing... And stopped. It landed on the time turning space!  
  
It only took a second, and Time Wizard's magic took affect. Time began shifting into the future, and everything became a thousand years older. The flames of Mr. Volcano faded away. and was now greatly weakened to 200/100. With a quick bash from the Time Wizard, James' held onto his lead.  
  
Jesse's Life Points: 5600  
  
James' Life Points: 5900  
  
Jesse was not upset this time as he was previously. But that is not to say he wasn't upset. Jesse merely drew his card, and summoned Armored Zombie (1500/0) in defense mode.  
  
Jesse's Life Points: 5600  
  
James' Life Points: 5900  
  
It was only a matter of seconds before James' next turn. As he drew his card his confidence only inresaed. He had drawn the trap card Waboku. This could come in handy later, and he set it face down on the field. For his next move, James summoned Beaver Warrior (1200/1500) in attack mode. After attacking with each and obliterating the Armored Zombie, James ended his turn.  
  
Jesse's Life Points: 4400  
  
James' Life Points: 5900  
  
"I don't know what to do! I think you may have won this duel." Jesse had said with a great lack of sincerity behind it. He summoned Woodland Spirit (900/400) in defense mode, and ended his turn once again.  
  
Jesse's Life Points: 4400  
  
James' Life Points: 5900  
  
Once again, James felt as confident as ever. He drew a card and smiled. "Now, your end is almost here Jessse!" James cried as he summoned Rude Kasier (1800/1600) in attack mode. The Time Wizard once again disposed of Jesse's weakest monster. James other monsters began their attack on Jesse's life points, and victory seemed near.  
  
Jesse's Life Points: 1400  
  
James' Life Points: 5900  
  
At this point, victory was almost certain for James. But sometimes, when victory seems nearest, it is actually the farthest away. For Jesse held in his hand, his rarest and strongest card. A card that would win him this duel, and prove him to be the better duelist. A grin slowly grew on his face, as he gazed across the dueling arena. Yes, the match was his.  
  
"Prepare your self, Frostfell, as you will now see my rarest card. The Red Eyes Black Dragon!" Jesse shouted, as he threw down two cards. The first was a magic card: Dark Hole. A swirling black vortex appeared in the middle of the arena, and grew larger and larger. Great gusts of wind sucked in all the monsters on the field, if the arena can actually generate such gusts. The arenas weren't known for creating such realistic and believable effects as the widely popular duel disks were. After the vortex had sucked up Jame's Time Wizard and his Beaver Warrior, it began closing, locking the monsters in their forever. But not even a second passed before Jesse's other card began to take affect. Before him, a large pitch black dragon formed, with menacing crimson eyes. The Red Eyes Black Dragon (2400/2000) let out an equally menacing roar.  
  
Jesse let out a triumphant grunt, and made a subtle wave in James' direction. "Red Eyes. attack his life points!" came another equally subtle command.  
  
The Red Eyes Black Dragon fired a blast of powerful energy out of it's mouth, that almost instantly hit James' dueling platform. As previously stated, duel disks offered a much more exciting version of this, albeit sometimes painful. On a dueling arena like this, a direct attack could seem a bit anti-climatic. But all in all it didn't really matter, as life points were life points, and James' had just lost most of his.  
  
Jesse's Life Points: 1400  
  
James' Life Points: 3500  
  
It was finally James' turn, and things had went from good to bad after Jesse played his Dark Hole magic card, and from bad to worse with Jesse's last move. James drew his card, Magical Hats. The problem is with no monsters on the field nor in his hand, this card was completely useless. James could do nothing but end his turn.  
  
Jesse's Life Points: 1400  
  
James' Life Points: 3500  
  
"What does it feel like, James" Jesse called out in an obnoxious tone, "to be on the receiving end of these attacks?". Jesse didn't wait for James to realize the question was very rhetorical before the Red Eyes Black Dragon had once again ravaged his life points.  
  
Jesse's Life Points: 1400  
  
James' Life Points: 1100  
  
James stood their, his eyes staring at the dragon towering over everything else around. He had spent many hours practicing this game with Solomon Motou, and James wouldn't let him down. According to Solomon, there was one thing more important then memorizing the rules of Duel Monsters, more important then knowing how the abilities of all the monsters, or why to avoid top decking. No, there was something more important then all of that. And that was the Heart of the cards.  
  
A second hadn't passed in-between James' drawing his card and summoning his most powerful monster, the demon Summoned Skull (2500/1200).  
  
"And now you will feel power of my strongest card!" boomed James' voice, backed with more power and force then he himself even knew he had. The beast let out a vicious growl that alone seemed to overpower the Red Eyes Black Dragon. The demon lunged forward at the dragon, and slashed at it with the force of a brick wall. The Skull's claws ripped through the dragon and tore it into shreds. The glowing eyes of the dragon faded as it dissipated into the air around it.  
  
But the dragon was only the first of the two monsters to vanish. The Summoned Skull vanished seconds after the Red Eyes did, as well as the lights on dueling platform. James saw across from him, Jesse's platform was lowering to the ground as he put his deck away.  
  
"You have won this one, Frostfell, but their will be other duels.". As soon as the platform reached the ground, Jesse quickly made an exit out of the room. 


	2. A Little Help From My Friends

Chapter II: A Gift From a Friend  
  
Among the swirling smoke around him, master duelist Chris Anderson stood confidently with a look of determination on his face, with a good reason too. While hey may be losing this duel at the moment, he was rated to be one of the top twenty duelists in the world. The crowd let out a loud roaring cheer and, Ryan Herriman, Chris' opponent, bowed a few times to the crowed and let out a laugh.  
  
"What a fool! While his dueling skills made be very good, his immature and rude attitude would prevent him from holding a position like mine for very long. It doesn't matter at all anyway. He has to beat me and win this tournament if he wants to hold such a position in the world rankings, and that won't happen." Anderson thought to himself as the crowd cheered on for what seemed like minutes. When they noise died down, Anderson drew a card from his deck.  
  
"It's a pity Mr. Herriman, a lot of people here seem to wish you would beat me. But you know as well as I do that it won't happen, am I right?" Anderson asked in a cool, calm voice. He didn't wait for an answer as he put down a magic card on his duel disk.  
  
"Shut up Chris, you're going-" Ryan yelled out, but was interrupted by Anderson. "I activate Reborn the Monster, and I bring my Gemini Elf back to the field!"  
  
The Gemini Elf, who had previously been destroyed by Ryan's Hayabusa Knight, reappeared in front of Chris Anderson.  
  
"I destroyed that card last time Anderson you moron. What are you try-" Ryan shouted out again, and again, was interrupted by Chris.  
  
"I then sacrifice my Gemini Elf to bring out my psycho shocking android, the Jinzo." Anderson said, in the same cool and calm voice he always used in duels. "Now Mr. Herriman, I believe my Jinzo has negated the effects of your Mirror Wall. That Knight of yours doesn't look so strong now, does it?"  
  
A crushed look spread across the face of Herriman. This was it. He had come all this way, and now had made a stupid mistake, and underestimated his opponent. Now, a black orb of energy was being hurtled at the Hayabusa Knight by the mechanical monstrosity known as Jinzo. The orb created a large explosion that not only eliminated the Knight, but the rest of Herriman's life points as well. The arena erupted with shouting and clapping. Chris Anderson had defended his position as being among the top 20 duelists, and showed Herriman he needed a lot more practice.  
  
Many many miles away, James Frostfell was sitting on his bed watching the duel on his television in awe, for several reasons. One being the high caliber performance in which the two had just given. James hoped that one day, preferably sooner than later, that he would have the skills and knowledge to duel that good. The second reason for James' was not how good they Anderson and Herriman dueled, but how they dueled. They dueled using the Super Expert rules, a set of rules in which James had very little knowledge of. Ever sine two weeks ago when he first learned to play Duel Monsters, he had learned to play by a simpler set of rules. But the biggest tournaments used these Super Expert rules, and if James wanted to win one of those tournaments, he would need to learn the rules.  
  
Next to the bed on which James sat was a small table where Leon and Tim were playing a game of Duel Monsters. In the time since James had defeated Jesse, Leon had really started to get into the game. He went back to the shop and took Tim with him. Leon bought many, many cards, and had even talked Tim into buying a lot. Solomon was so happy from all the business he was getting from those three; he even gave Leon a small discount (much to Joey's dislike). A commercial break had interrupted the live broadcast of the Duel Monsters tournament, and James started listening to the duel.  
  
"Ok, I will summon Whiptail Crow in attack mode, and then." Tim said, looking at his cards. He studied them for a second, and then picked one out and put it on the table. ".and then I play this magic card, Stim Pack. It increases my monster by 700 attack."  
  
James began to zone out of the conversation, even though he hadn't been listening for very long. The television had once again grabbed his attention. A picture of a large dueling arena appeared on the screen, with some words on it while music played in the background. James read the words in his head. It seemed a smaller tournament which was sanctioned by the Duel Monsters League was being held here in Fenton, tomorrow morning. This was his chance to begin his career as a duelist.  
  
James walked over to the bookshelf in his room, and picked up his deck from a shelf. He turned his head to where Tim and Leon were dueling.  
  
"Ah, now your Whiptail Crow has been weakened by your Stim Pack, and can be destroyed by." Leon paused as he put a monster card on the table, "my Armored Zombie. Now, my Zombie will attack your Crow."  
  
James looked throughout his deck. He had improved his deck since he created his original one, and now it was stronger then ever. He had taken out some weaker monsters and added in some stronger ones. His strongest monster was still the dark and creepy Summoned Skull, but he also had another powerful card. He had some leftover money and decided to buy a pack of Duel Monsters cards one day while walking by a hobby shop. When he opened it, he saw it. The magic card Monster Reborn. It was a card that was not only extremely powerful, but pretty rare too. All of the top duelists used this card, as he saw Chris Anderson use it in the tourney just minutes ago. The ability to bring back one monster from either player's graveyard allowed for amazing comebacks. James knew that his Summoned Skull and Monster Reborn cards would be his greatest ally in tomorrow's tournament.  
  
"Wow, 2200 attack? Argh" Leon mumbled as he moved his Armored Zombie to the graveyard. "I believe," Tim stated pleasantly, "That you have 200 Life Points left. And I have. let's see... ah, still at 1500."  
  
"You mean I only did 500 damage to you?" "That's right." "And I only have 200 points left?" "Correct" "That's strange, it's almost like I have some really powerful card I am holding back." "Huh?" "I will draw, and then summon Barrel Dragon" Leon said, a grin spread wide across his face. "Now I flip these three coins and. there we go! I flipped two heads, so your Fiend Megacyber is destroyed. I believe my Barrel Dragon will demolish the rest of your life points."  
  
By this time, James had zoned back in to everything around him and stopped thinking about his cards. "Hey, guys, did you see that thing on the TV?" James asked.  
  
Tim mumbled a "No" as he reshuffled his deck, wanting a rematch. "It said there is going to be a small official Duel Monsters League tournament here in town tomorrow. This could be our chance to start off our dueling careers."  
  
Leon and Tim shuffled their decks and seemed to think about and process what James had said. Leon finished shuffling first and drew his hand, so he spoke first. "Hmm, Duelist League huh?" "Yep" answered James. "Well." "Well what?" "To be honest, at first it seemed that the only reason you bought any Duel Monsters cards was to prove you were better then Jesse. "Well, as long as we are being honest, it really was. But I don't know. This game just." James paused for a few moments and looked at his deck. "I can't really explain it. I enjoy this game, I guess."  
  
Leon nodded and glanced at Tim who had drawn his hand, and they began their next duel. Leon went first and played some cards, then turned and looked at James. "I'm in. This is a great game, as you said, and I would like to play against some different people besides you two for once. I just hope everyone there is ready to taste the power of my Barrel Dragon!"  
  
James smiled. Good, he would have some company at least. "How about you Tim? What do you think?" "I dunno," Tim said. "I would like to, but you see." he stopped as he set a card on the field. "Sounds like good fun and all, but I wouldn't even be able to compete. You have your Summoned Skull, and Leon here has his powerful Barrel Dragon. I myself don't have very many cards, much less any powerful ones. I like playing Duel Monsters, but I don't think I am good enough to even start playing it competitively."  
  
James thought about this for a bit as Tim and Leon continued dueling. This went on for several seconds, and then James started looking at his deck. After spotting the card, he tossed it to Tim.  
  
"Here, take my Summoned Skull." James said.  
  
Leon and Tim both looked at the Summoned Skull card on the table, and did a double take. After a few seconds of an awkward silence, Tim finally blurted out a "What?!".  
  
"Yes. Take my Summoned Skull." James repeated. "You're right. You don't have any extremely powerful monsters. I have my Judge Man and my Monster Reborn cards." "Are you. sure about this?" Tim questioned. "C'mon now, I said you can have it. I will be fine. trust me." "Wow, thanks a lot. With this I actually stand a chance now. Thanks man."  
  
James held up a hand. "Don't mention it."  
  
***  
  
It was early Saturday morning, and James was awake making breakfast. The tournament would start in four hours. James took his plate of french toast from the stove to the table and started eating. His backpack sat in another chair next to him, with a copy of Duel Monsters Master Rules: Volume 1 in it, among other supplies. His deck sat on the table next to his bag, and James glanced at it.  
  
"This will be the day I start my duel monsters career," he thought. "Yes, this will be the day."  
  
***  
  
James dashed out the door and slammed it behind him. Seconds later, the door opened, as he ran back into the kitchen and grabbed his backpack. He ran out the door a second time, slamming it for a second time, and coming back inside the house a second time. He grabbed his deck off the table and ran back out for a third time. He ran out across the yard to Leon's car. Tim was in the passenger seat looking at a Duel Monsters magazine. James jumped in back, and closed the door. Leon took off down the street.  
  
"Are you guys as excited as I am?" James asked with a big grin on his face. "Of course! I can't wait to use my new card." Tim said, putting down the magazine and flipping over the card on top of his deck. "Thanks again James, this will help me win many duels today. James' grin grew even wider.  
  
After about fifteen minutes of Leon's reckless driving, the trio had arrived at the location of the tournament. It was a small building in which about eight dueling systems had been set up. They weren't as big as the ones used at Kaiba Land or the one James and Jesse used in their duel. James walked up to a table that came up to about his naval. It had spaces for the monster and magic cards on them, along with his deck. There was also a little screen on the table above the spot marked "Graveyard". About five yards across from him another table sat facing him, where the other duelist would normally stand.  
  
One by one more and more duelists began showing up. They came in all sizes and ages, experts and newcomers alike, wearing many different clothes. James noticed trench coats similar to the ones Seto Kaiba had been known to wear seemed to be popular among some of them. After about twenty minutes the place became packed. James estimated about fifty to sixty people were in the small building. There was plenty of breathing and stretching room, but you had people moving about you all around. He noticed not all of them were duelists. Lots of them didn't have a deck, but were mainly there to cheer on their friends. Others were there trading cards with each other. James walked around a bit and heard many different conversations.  
  
"That's why I keep a Solemn Judgment in my deck; I can prevent something like that from happening." "I will trade you the right and left legs for all these right here." "Yes, the Dark Magician is a very powerful card. You show great potential. Trust in the Dark Magician, and he will come to your aid."  
  
James looked at the last guy who he heard speaking. He saw an older man wearing dark robes. Sitting down across from a young kid, by his looks in his pre-teens, who was holding a card in his hands. The kid wore a big smile and thanked the man, and walked off while staring at the card. James was going to walk over to the man, when he heard a loud whistle.  
  
A man stood up among the rest. James recognized him quickly as one of the Duel Monsters League's Official Judges. Everyone began quieting down right away, and looked at him.  
  
"Welcome to the Fenton League tournament. I thank you all for coming. I am not much for speeches, so I will make this short. If you are here to enter the tournament, come over to my desk with your strongest monster. We will set the brackets up by pairing off each person according to the strength of their most powerful monster to make a more balanced tournament. I wish you all luck."  
  
The silence died quickly as many people walked up to the desk to begin signing up. James saw Leon and Tim and jogged over to them, and they waited in line together.  
  
They waited a few minutes, and they chatted back and forth about their first impressions of this tournament. As the line began growing shorter, James tapped his foot nervously. Finally, he was face to face with the Judge.  
  
"Name?" the Judge asked. "James Frostfell." James answered quickly and nervously. "What is your strongest monster?" "Judgeman" James said, still nervous, holding up the card. "Thank you for your patience."  
  
James walked moved out of the way for Leon and Tim to sign up. After a few moments, Tim and Leon were signed up, and the before long all the positions were closed. The three walked over to a large board on one of the walls that Leon spotted, in which names and brackets were now appearing. They watched the names flashing and pairing up with one another. James saw his own name paired up with the name "Thomas Janson" at spot 7.  
  
"Good luck you two." James said as he jogged off to the set of tables with the number 7 sign next to them.  
  
James was surprised to see his opponent already waiting there for him. He walked up and shook his hand.  
  
"James is it? I don't think I have seen you before." "Ah, this is my first time here." "Ah nice. Have a lot of experience with the game?" "A decent amount." James lied. "Well then, good luck." "You too."  
  
The two shuffled each other's deck, and returned it to its owner. They both then walked over to the table they chose, and set their deck in place.  
  
On the table, the screen flashed "Duel Begun. Draw Your Starting Hand."  
  
James took a deep breath. "Heart of the Cards, don't fail me now." 


	3. The Strategy of Janson

James looked at his opening hand. His card hand was pretty decent, some strong monsters and a few magic cards. His real hand was a bit sweaty.  
  
The screen on the table began flashing. Through a random selection, Thomas was picked to take the first turn. James took a deep breath, slightly worried abut what was Thomas would do.  
  
"Ok, I will make my first move short and sweet. I set a monster in face down defense mode, and that's it."  
  
James let out a sigh of relief. This wasn't that bad. He held onto his cards with his left hand, drawing his new card with his right hand and putting it with the others.  
  
"For my first move I will summon the Twin-Headed Fire Dragon." James plucked the card from the others and set it onto the table before him. A strange noise emitted from the table, but in just a few seconds the dark red scales of the Twin-Headed Fire Dragon (2200/1700) materialized before him. It wasn't long before James ordered the monster to attack, and Thomas' card dematerialized before him.  
  
Thomas became silent and his face seemed a bit flushed. He set another monster in face down defense, and another card face down. He never uttered a word.  
  
James drew another card, and smiled again. A good card that could save his life points later. "Ok, attack his face down again." James commanded, although this time he was in for a bit of a surprise.  
  
"You attacked my Bite Shoes, and by doing so, you activated his effect. While it is still sent to the graveyard due to your attack, your dragon is put in defense mode."  
  
James said nothing. While his monster's defense points were weaker then his attack points, he would still lose no life points if the beast was destroyed. James just gave a subtle nod and ended his turn.  
  
"While that may have looked harmless at first, you will soon see it was only the first part of my plan to win this duel!" Thomas said, almost shouted, with more confidence then James had heard from him yet. "First, I summon my powerful Parrot Dragon (2000/1300). Next I activate my trap card, Skull Invitation. Now my Parrot Dragon will attack your Two-Headed Fire Dragon!". That was a bit for James to take in at first. Before he could question effect of Thomas' trap card, his Parrot Dragon swooped in and destroyed the Fire Dragon with its huge beak. Next, the life point counter on James' dueling table lowered by 300 points.  
  
"What just happened? My monster was in defense mode!" James objected. "My trap card is responsible for that." Thomas stated proudly. "So your trap makes it so I lose life points even if my monsters are in defense mode?" "No, that's only a mere illusion. The actually effect is much, much worse for you." "Ah, that's good. Wait a second, worse?" "Indeed." Thomas nodded. "My trap card makes it so when a card is sent to the graveyard; the card's owner loses 300 life points. My whole deck is based around destroying your cards, so you will have to protect them as well as your life points. Now that I am done teaching you how to play this game, I will set one more card face down and end my turn."  
  
James: 1700 Thomas: 2000  
  
James thought about his current situation. He had nothing on the field, but there had to be a way to turn the current situation around. He drew a card: Sword of Deep Seated. Ah, things were looking up. He could tell this Thomas wasn't new to the game, but James refused to believe Janson was unable to be beat.  
  
"Ok, I summon Neo the Magical Swordsman in attack mode. And then-" "Not so fast newbie." Thomas grinned a grin that James knew meant bad news. Thomas flipped his face down card over. "I activate my Trap Hole. Your Swordsman is destroyed, and you lose even more life points."  
  
James was worried now. He couldn't summon another monster this turn, and without any monsters, his life points were wide open to a direct attack. And even more; James realized from the 'newbie' comment that he looked as nervous as he felt. "No, it can't be over yet." he thought. His hands were even sweatier now. But then he remembered his card he drew last turn. He set it face down on the field.  
  
"Make your move." He said, trying to sound as calm as possible.  
  
James: 1400 Thomas: 2000  
  
"For my turn, I will summon the Dark Elf (2000/800) in attack mode." Thomas bellowed. "You look worried? Is that sweat I see?" Thomas let out a laugh. "I thought you were experienced? Let's get this over worth, Parrot Dragon, attack him directly."  
  
The green large beaked beast flew directly at James. He started the monster straight in the eyes, and flipped over his face down card. "I activate my trap card, Waboku! It protects me from any of your attacks for a whole turn."  
  
"That will protect you for this turn, but you can't stall forever. I end my turn."  
  
James put his hand on his deck. Maybe he had made a mistake coming here? After all, he had just started this game, and had he honestly expected to compete with those who had spent a lot more time playing and mastering this game? What was he thinking? He might as well give up now. "No!" he thought. If he gave up, he would be letting not only himself down, but his friends and Solomon Motou too. He had to keep going, if only for them. He drew his card, and put it on the field almost immediately in an excited frantic motion.  
  
"I summon the Judge Man (2200/1500) in attack mode. And now he will attack your Dark Elf!" James found a comforting feeling in having his strongest monster on the field. On command Judge Man leaped forward to Dark Elf, and with one powerful punch, destroyed her. Finally, James was making going forward in this duel instead of backward.  
  
James: 1400 Thomas: 1500  
  
"Very nice, newbie." Thomas laughed. "But now I will activate my magic card, Swords of Revealing Light, which will stop you for attacking me for three turns! And with that, I end my turn."  
  
James drew his next card, but there was nothing he could do. "He must be worried if he is stalling like this." He thought. "But what if he is able to make a comeback in these three turns." James ended his turn.  
  
Thomas picked up his next card. "Ah, just the one I needed. I summon this Dream Clown (1200/900) in attack mode. And that will do it for this turn."  
  
James drew a card and set his Magical Hats card face down, and summoned his Beaver Warrior in attack mode. "Let's hope you have something good planned, for your sake Thomas. Or this duel will end quite quickly. I am finished with my turn." James found himself becoming more and more confident.  
  
"Oh, you are both right and wrong there. I do have something planned, and the duel will still end quite quickly." Thomas drew a card and reached for the table. "I will put my Dream Clown in defense mode. Tell me James, do you know that Dream Clown has a special ability?"  
  
James felt his newfound confidence fading quickly. "No." he muttered dishearteningly. "Ah, then allow me to explain." Thomas offered with a grin, it was obvious he was enjoying this. " See, when my Dream Clown is changed from attack mode to defense mode, one monster on your side of the field is destroyed. I choose to use his effect on your Judge Man." Almost instantly, James saw his Judge Man combust and dematerialize right in front of him. James then heard the all too familiar sound of his life point counter decreasing.  
  
"Ah, but that's not all, not even close." Thomas said. James felt his hands dampening all over again. "I will summon Don Zaloog (1400/1500). Now, first my Parrot Dragon will attack your Beaver Warrior."  
  
For the third time this game, James watched the Parrot Dragon swoop in on him. But for the second time this game, James was prepared. "I will activate my Magical Hats!" James cried out, flipping his card over. Instantly a large black top hat appeared over the Beaver Warrior, and the hat split into four different hats. "My Beaver Warrior is in one of those hats." James stated. "The hat which hides him is up to you to discover."  
  
The Parrot Dragon flew at the large magical hat on the left, flying straight through and destroying the hat. But luckily for James, the Beaver Warrior was not hiding in the hat on the far left.  
  
"That's a nice trick you pulled, but I still have one more attack. Don Zaloog, attack the middle hat!" Thomas commanded. The infamous warrior known as Don Zaloog dashed to the middle hat and sliced it in two with his sword. The sword not only cut the hat in half, but also the Beaver Warrior hiding within. "Ah poor newbie, it seems I found your Beaver Warrior. I assume since you didn't know Dream Clown's affect, I am right in saying you don't know this monster's effect either?"  
  
James mumbled another "No".  
  
"Ah, it's quite simple. Whenever an attack from Don Zaloog lowers your life points, one card at random is discarded from your hand at random." The screen on the dueling table flashed for several seconds, and when it stopped, a small mechanical arm came out of the table and grabbed a card from James hand, placing it in the card graveyard. The familiar sound of lowering life points sounded.  
  
"Now, let's review, shall we?" Thomas asked. He was practically dancing with glee. You lost 300 life points for the destruction of Judge Man, 300 life points from the destruction of Beaver Warrior plus 200 more for being in battle with Don Zaloog, and 300 more for the destruction of the card from your hand. By my calculations, you aren't doing so hot."  
  
James: 300 Thomas: 1500  
  
James was too nervous to be angry, and too angry to be completely nervous. He hated this Thomas person, and wasn't exactly sure if he trembled with rage or embarrassment. This was not how he planned things at all. He drew his card, in which he had a bit of difficulty due to his trembling fingers. He set his monster he drew in face down defense mode, and ended his turn.  
  
"I will attack your face down monster with my Parrot Dragon." Thomas informed his opponent, as the green winged beast zoomed in at James. "Well, I can hardly say you were a worthy opponent-" Thomas was stunned at what he just saw. As the Parrot Dragon zoomed in on the holographic image of a face down card, the card flipped up to reveal the monster Giant Soldier of Stone (1300/2000). The Giant Soldier repelled the Parrot Dragon's attack, and James' life points remained intact.  
  
"This match isn't over yet. As long as I have life points, I will continue to fight!" James said. Thomas ended his turn, and James drew his card: Card Destruction.  
  
James spent a moment in deep concentration. There had to be a way to win this. But it looked so hopeless. He had only 300 life points left, and if another one of his monsters were destroyed, he would lose this match. Meanwhile his strongest monsters had already been destroyed. What could he do?  
  
James looked at the life point scores. Thomas had five times as many life points as James did. What could he do? "Wait a second." James thought. "I only attacked Thomas once, and that was for 200 damage. Yet he has lost 500 life points." Then it hit him. If Skull Invitation worked on Thomas as well as James, then he could use this to his advantage. James looked over and saw that Thomas has five cards in his hand. Not enough, not yet at least.  
  
"I will equip my magic card Horn of Light to my Giant Soldier of Stone, raising his defense to 2800. Then I will end my turn." James informed his opponent, waiting for his opponent's move.  
  
His opponent did very little. "I will just draw my card and pass this turn."  
  
There! Thomas had fallen right into James' trap. He drew a card. "Excellent," he thought. "A magic card.". James summoned Rude Kaiser (1800/1500) and set his entire hand of magic and trap cards onto the field, face down, except for one.  
  
"Now Thomas Janson, you will be destroyed by your own trap card! I activate the last card in my hand, Card Destruction!" A grim expression crossed Thomas' face, a grim and silent expression. James took this silence to make his opponent look like the "newbie".  
  
"Allow me to explain what this card does. It destroys every card in our hands, and we draw a brand new hand. But since I have no cards in my hand at this time, no cards of mine are destroyed. But you, on the other hand, have a full hand of six cards. They are all sent to the graveyard, and you take 300 damage for each one sent. I do believe that's game."  
  
James: 300  
  
Thomas: 0 


End file.
